Our perspective at VantagePoint

Let your customers write your next communication

You’ve been working on your new product or service for months. Or maybe years. You’re really excited about it, and want to tell the whole world about every last feature you packed into your new offering.

The problem is that customers don’t buy features. They buy benefits. They buy answers to their problems. So how do you show them what they want to know?

Every customer has a pain point (or two, or more). And complex b-to-b selling cycles usually mean there are multiple decision makers and influencers involved, each with his or her own set of pain points. So the challenge is to identify these needs and effectively position your new product or service as the solution to them.

How do you identify these needs? The answer is simple: go straight to the source. Interview your customers. Survey prospects. Get out of the office and into the field.

And for those of you who sell through channels, be sure to think about your customers’ customer. Your channel partners certainly are. Communicate value propositions that help your channel partners understand how your product or service will solve their problems, as well as their customers’ problems. You’ll make your partners’ jobs easier. And (hopefully) they’ll love you for it.

Ideally, this process should precede both the development of your marketing and sales materials and the development of new products and services. Market-informed products and services are more likely to succeed because you’re offering a solution to problems you know exist.

Think from your customers’ perspective and you’ll connect more effectively with your marketplace.